242508.27 To the Arawyn

Posted on 27 Aug 2025 @ 5:22pm by Lieutenant Commander Sandra Boren

842 words; about a 4 minute read

=/\= Spacedock – Observation Gantry =/\=

Sandra stood several steps behind the Captain, as were most senior officers. In her dress uniform, at attention as was expected for the official act of commissioning. Another first for her. This was an assignment of firsts and new things. Part of her just wanted to scream and run away, yet, here she was, standing at attention, because she was a Blokpoel and a Boren, and a Starfleet Officer, and even if she had a hard time admitting it to herself: she loved the big challenges. It was something she had inherited from her mother. The moment the bottle of champagne hit the hull, Sandra tapped on the small PADD she had with her, to fire up the hull light sequence, then joined the applause as it rose again.

After the ceremony in space dock was completed, Sandra looked around the crowd, she recognised several of the Arawyn officers, and a number of the brass. Standing out to her though, was, of course, her mother. The last time they had seen each other was not that long ago, in Starfleet terms, they had been in her mother’s home dimension when her grandfather passed away. Sandra had had to leave sooner; her emergency LOA was only about two weeks. Thankfully, the Valiant had not been far from Epsilon fleet space, so the travel time had been relatively short.

The crowd started to move to the docking are, as proceedings would continue in Ten Forward, and Sandra noticed her mother standing alone, a rare thing to happen, except at home or in their office. With both in uniform, and in public, Sandra stepped forward towards her, came to attention and inclined her head and greeted, “Admiral.”

Suzanna’s expression softened as she saw her daughter come to attention in front of her. “At ease, Commander,” she said, “Are you ready to depart with the Arawyn, Sandra?” Roger and she were proud of all their children, and Sandra was no exception. If her father had not been a diplomat, he would have been an engineer, so she did not have it from a stranger. He had always been tinkering with gadget, modern and antiques, it was shame that Sandra had not had a chance to spend more time with him when she was young.

“All external work has been completed,” Sandra replied, a hint of pride in her voice, “however, we still have work to do inside the ship, while we are en-route. Some components did not arrive until yesterday.” She did not really want to think of her to-do list at this point in time, though. “It is agreeable to see you settled in here the Starbase,” Sandra stated, and meant it. The biggest disadvantage of having a family that was entirely in Starfleet was that one never knew when one would see each other face-to-face again, especially with ship-based assignments. Sometimes, a visual call was not enough.

Suzanna’s eyes softened as she regarded her daughter, “it is indeed.”

=/\= Ten Forward =/\=

The group of people had moved to Ten Forward, and Sandra was there too. Her glass contained sparkling apple juice, she was avoiding the champagne, but no one would know it wasn’t alcohol. Her mother had told her in her teens that half Vulcans, and likely quarter Vulcans, do not hold their alcohol well. At least Suzanna hadn’t, and wanted to avoid her children to avoid falling into that trap, without knowledge. The details had remained vague, but had something to do with a party on the Cortez and a little red dress.

Small talk was not one of her strengths, but that too was a skill she was acquiring, both parents had mentioned it before. Something about the higher the rank, the more important it was to keep conversation flowing at the required parties. So, here she was talking with two of the Engineering officers, trying to stay away from work, they, too, were allowed to take a break from their to-do lists.

When Admiral MacLaren gave her toast, Sandra and the group of officers she was standing with all raised their glasses and took a sip. Next to speak was the Captain, she gave an eloquent speech.

"So, as we commission the Arawyn into service, let us not just think of what she can do, but what we can do together. May we live up to the light her name carries. May we find the courage to face whatever lies ahead. And may the cat refrain from climbing the warp core. Thank you."

Sandra allowed a small smile; indeed, the last thing she wanted to see was any cat in engineering, including her own Luna.

"To the Arawyn: may she be swift when needed, steady when tested, and always find her way home. And to her crew: may we be just as reliable, though perhaps a little less prone to blown EPS relays. Cheers."

Sandra raised her glass, as did the officers around her, “to the Arawyn!” It all finally felt real to her

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